That unusually perfect photo in your group chat may soon come with a record showing how it was created or edited. Google Messages has introduced support for Content Credentials, allowing users to check the history of photos, videos and audio files shared in chats, including whether AI tools were used to edit them.
The feature is based on C2PA standards, a system designed to track how media files are created and changed. It works like a paper trail for digital content. For example, a sunset photo may show that it was originally taken with a camera but was later edited using AI software.
If Google Messages detects that a media file has been edited but cannot confirm whether AI was used, it will label the file as “edited using AI tools.”
However, the feature has an important limitation. It cannot tell users whether a photo is real or fake. It can only show the history attached to the file. A photo without Content Credentials does not necessarily mean it has not been edited.
The lack of credentials may simply mean the file passed through an app that does not support the new format. Therefore, having no record does not prove that the media is authentic.
For now, the feature is available only on Android devices and does not work on the web version of Google Messages. To use it, users need to press and hold the media, select “Info” and scroll down to “How This Was Made.”
If Content Credentials are available, Google Messages will show whether the content was originally created using a camera or microphone and whether it was edited with AI or non-AI tools.
Content Credentials may not settle every debate over suspicious photos yet. The standard still needs wider adoption across cameras, apps and platforms, meaning many media files shared by users will continue to have no creation or editing history attached to them.
